Weekend Premier League team news

All the latest as clubs prepare for the return to action after the international break

Adam Lallana is in line to make his return for Liverpool’s home game against his former club Southampton on Saturday  after three months out with a thigh injury. Photograph:   Dave Howarth/PA Wire
Adam Lallana is in line to make his return for Liverpool’s home game against his former club Southampton on Saturday after three months out with a thigh injury. Photograph: Dave Howarth/PA Wire

SATURDAY (3pm unless stated)

Arsenal (6) v Tottenham (3), 12.30pm – Live Sky Sports Main Event & Premier League

Arsenal will hand late fitness tests to Shkodran Mustafi and Danny Welbeck. Defender Mustafi has been sidelined since the start of October with a hamstring issue, while a groin injury suffered in the 2-1 defeat at Watford has kept forward Welbeck out for the past month. Both could be in contention to face Spurs although striker Olivier Giroud is out after injuring his thigh on international duty with France while midfielder Santi Cazorla (ankle) is a long-term absentee.

Harry Kane is among a number of Tottenham players set for late fitness tests. Kane is hoping to shake off a knee injury while Dele Alli (hamstring), Harry Winks (ankle), Hugo Lloris (groin) and Michel Vorm (knee) will also have to be assessed. Toby Alderweireld and Victor Wanyama remain out with hamstring and knee problems respectively, while Erik Lamela has only recently recovered from a long-standing hip injury.

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Last season: Tottenham 2 Arsenal 0, Arsenal 1 Tottenham 1
Last five league matches: Arsenal W L W W L; Tottenham W W W L W
Top scorers (all competitions): Alexandre Lacazette (Arsenal) 6; Harry Kane (Tottenham) 13
Match odds: H 11-8 A 9-5 D 5-2
Referee: Mike Dean

Bournemouth (17) v Huddersfield (10)
Bournemouth will make a late fitness call on Joshua King because of a back problem. Midfielder Junior Stanislas remains sidelined by a groin complaint but striker Benik Afobe is back in contention after recovering from a thigh strain picked up before the international break. Defenders Brad Smith (hip) and Tyrone Mings (back) continue their rehabilitation.

Huddersfield will be without suspended defender Christopher Schindler, who was sent off for two bookable offences in the recent win against West Brom. Martin Cranie is expected to start. Midfielder Aaron Mooy will be assessed after returning from international duty with Australia, while Philip Billing (ankle), Michael Hefele (Achilles), Kasey Palmer (hamstring) and Jon Gorenc Stankovic (knee) are still out.

Last season: No corresponding fixture
Last five league matches: Bournemouth D L W L W; Huddersfield L L W L W
Top scorers (all competitions): Andrew Surman & Joshua King (Bournemouth) 2; Steve Mounie, Aaron Mooy & Laurent Depoitre (Huddersfield) 2
Match odds: H 10-11 A 16-5 D 12-5
Referee: Lee Probert

Burnley (7) v Swansea (19)
Burnley striker Chris Wood may have to settle for a place on the bench. Wood only arrived back at the club on Friday after New Zealand's World Cup playoff games against Peru in Wellington and Lima, where he made substitute appearances due to concerns over his hamstring. Nahki Wells sustained a minor knock in a training match on Tuesday as he awaits his first-team debut and Jon Walters, Dean Marney (both knee), and Tom Heaton (shoulder) are still sidelined.

Swansea welcome back Wilfried Bony and Renato Sanches after missing recent games with respective hamstring and thigh injuries. New player-coach Leon Britton is over a groin problem. Martin Olsson is also available after hamstring trouble and Ki Sung-yueng will be assessed after returning from international duty with South Korea.

Last season: Swansea 3 Burnley 2, Burnley 0 Swansea 1
Last five league matches: Burnley W D L W W; Swansea L W L L L
Top scorers (all competitions): Chris Wood (Burnley) 5; Tammy Abraham (Swansea) 5
Match odds: H 1-1 A 3-1 D 4-1
Referee: Martin Atkinson

Crystal Palace (20) v Everton (15)
Ruben Loftus-Cheek faces a late fitness test before Palace manager Roy Hodgson selects his starting XI. The midfielder is recovering from a back spasm. Striker Christian Benteke is expected to start after returning from a knee injury. Patrick van Aanholt is absent with a hamstring injury, and knocks mean Jordon Mutch and Lee Chung-yong will again miss out.

Everton have midfielder Tom Davies and full back Cuco Martina available. Davies has recovered from the minor injury which led to his withdrawal from the England under-21s squad last week, while Martina is ready to be involved again after suffering concussion and neck pain during the 3-0 Europa League loss in Lyon on November 2nd. Caretaker boss David Unsworth has said Morgan Schneiderlin and Kevin Mirallas, who were both left out of the matchday 18 for Everton’s last fixture, the 3-2 league win over Watford, are available for selection this time around.

Last season: Crystal Palace 0 Everton 1, Everton 1 Crystal Palace 1
Last five league matches: Crystal Palace L W L D L; Everton L D L L W
Top scorers (all competitions): James McArthur, Bakary Sako & Wilfried Zaha (Crystal Palace) 2; Wayne Rooney, Oumar Niasse & Dominic Calvert-Lewin (Everton) 5
Match odds: H 6-4 A 19-10 D 11-5
Referee: Anthony Taylor

Raheen Sterling could return to action with Manchester City after missing  England’s friendly internationals. Photograph:  Paul Ellis/AFP/Getty Images
Raheen Sterling could return to action with Manchester City after missing England’s friendly internationals. Photograph: Paul Ellis/AFP/Getty Images

Leicester (12) v Manchester City (1)
Leicester's Vicente Iborra is fit to face Manchester City. The midfielder came off with an ankle problem in the 2-2 draw at Stoke after scoring his first Foxes goal while Ben Chilwell (knee) is also available. Robert Huth (knee) will miss out while midfielder Matty James is also troubled by an Achilles problem and Adrien Silva remains unregistered despite his current appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport.

Manchester City are without centre back Nicolas Otamendi and makeshift left back Fabian Delph is doubtful. Otamendi is suspended and Delph is still troubled by the calf injury that forced him to pull out of England’s friendlies against Germany and Brazil. Forward Raheem Sterling, who also missed England’s matches, is much improved after a back problem while there are no concerns over striker Sergio Agüero after he was taken ill while on international duty. Captain Vincent Kompany, out since August with a calf injury, has a chance of returning but Eliaquim Mangala is another defensive option. Left back Benjamin Mendy (knee) is out for the long term.

Last season: Man City 2 Leicester 1, Leicester 4 Man City 2
Last five league matches: Leicester D D W W D; Man City W W W W W
Top scorers (all competitions): Jamie Vardy (Leicester) 6; Sergio Aguero & Raheem Sterling (Man City) 10
Match odds: H 8-1 A 1-3 D 4-1
Referee: Graham Scott

Liverpool (5) v Southampton (13), Live Sky Sports Premier League (Ireland only)
Liverpool manager Jürgen Klopp has virtually a fully-fit squad to select from. Adam Lallana is fit again after a three-month lay-off with a thigh injury while fellow midfielder Jordan Henderson has recovered from a similar problem which forced him to miss their last Premier League match and England's two friendlies. Forward Sadio Mane has trained after reporting a slight hamstring problem on his return from international duty and Klopp will make a late decision on his availability.

Mario Lemina is set to be Southampton’s only absentee for the trip to Anfield. The former Juventus midfielder remains sidelined with an ankle injury which has kept him out of the last two matches. Northern Ireland’s Steven Davis, the Republic of Ireland’s Shane Long and Italy’s Manolo Gabbiadini are all available despite failing to qualify for next summer’s World Cup.

Last season: Liverpool 0 Southampton 0, Southampton 0 Liverpool 0
Last five league matches: Liverpool D D L W W; Southampton L D W D L
Top scorers (all competitions): Mohamed Salah (Liverpool) 12; Manolo Gabbiadini (Southampton) 3
Match odds: H 2-5 A 16-5 D 12-5
Referee: Mike Jones

West Brom (16) v Chelsea (4)
Nacer Chadli and James Morrison have been ruled out for the Baggies. Belgium international Chadli has suffered a hip injury and could be out for a number of weeks, with boss Tony Pulis unhappy he played twice for his country during the international break. Morrison has undergone surgery on his Achilles and no return date has been set for the Scotland international, who has played just six times this season.

David Luiz is in the squad for Chelsea following his tactical omission against Manchester United prior to the international break. Striker Michy Batshuayi (ankle) is out and forward Charly Musonda (knee) is also expected to be missing on Saturday, but defender Gary Cahill (back) and midfielder Danny Drinkwater (calf) are fit following knocks. Right wing back Victor Moses is about a week away from training as he recuperates from a hamstring injury.

Last season: West Brom 0 Chelsea 1, Chelsea 1 West Brom 0
Last five league matches: West Brom D D L L L; Chelsea L L W W W
Top scorers (all competitions): Jay Rodriguez (West Brom) 3; Alvaro Morata (Chelsea) 8
Match odds: H 9-2 A 4-7 D 3-1
Referee: Jon Moss

Manchester United (2) v Newcastle (11), 5.30pm – Live BT Sport 1
Manchester United welcome back Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Paul Pogba and Marcos Rojo. Ibrahimovic and Rojo make the squad for the first time since suffering cruciate knee ligament injuries in April and Pogba is back after two months on the sidelines with hamstring trouble. Phil Jones looks certain to miss out after being injured in England's friendly against Germany.

Newcastle boss Rafael Benitez will be without central defender Jamaal Lascelles (ankle) and winger Christian Atsu (thigh), with the latter likely to be out of action for at least two weeks. Goalkeeper Rob Elliot, who sat out the Republic of Ireland’s playoff against Denmark because of a family bereavement, is available, while full back Paul Dummett (hamstring) is back in training and midfielder Mikel Merino is due to return from a back problem in the next 48 hours.

Last season: No corresponding fixture
Last five league matches: Man Utd W D L W L; Newcastle D D W L L
Top scorers (all competitions): Romelu Lukaku (Man Utd) 11; Joselu, Aleksandar Mitrovic & Jamaal Lascelles (Newcastle) 2
Match odds: H 2-7 A 11-1 D 4-1
Referee: Craig Pawson

SUNDAY

Watford (9) v West Ham (18), 4pm – Live on Sky Sports Main Event & Premier League
Watford goalkeeper Heurelho Gomes is back in contention after recovering from a head injury. Defender Christian Kabasele (back) has also been passed fit while midfielder Roberto Pereyra and Sebastian Prodl (both hamstring) face late fitness tests. Younes Kaboul (hamstring) is again expected to miss out while Nathaniel Chalobah remains sidelined with a knee injury.

New West Ham boss David Moyes will be without Javier Hernandez for his first game in charge. The striker suffered a hamstring injury on international duty with Mexico, but winger Michail Antonio is battling to be fit after his hamstring problem. Pablo Zabaleta returns from suspension but fellow defenders Sam Byram, Jose Fonte and James Collins are injured.

Last season: Watford 1 West Ham 1, West Ham 2 Watford 4
Last five league matches: Watford D W L L L; West Ham W D L D L
Top scorers (all competitions): Richarlison (Watford) 7; Andre Ayew (West Ham) 5
Match odds: 21-20 A 13-5 D 12-5
Referee: Andre Marriner

MONDAY

Brighton (8) v Stoke (14), 8pm – Live on Sky Sports Main Eveny & Premier League
Brighton manager Chris Hughton reported no fresh injury problems following the international break. Goalkeeper Mathew Ryan helped Australia secure qualification for the World Cup after a 3-1 win over Honduras, and has been travelling back from Sydney. Midfielder Steve Sidwell continues his recovery from a back problem.

Geoff Cameron remains sidelined for Stoke. The United States international is still suffering with the after-effects of a concussion suffered in training nearly three weeks ago. Boss Mark Hughes is hopeful goalkeeper Jack Butland could be back in less than a month after breaking a finger while on England duty.

Last season: No corresponding fixture
Last five league matches: Brighton L D W D W; Stoke W L L W D
Top scorers (all competitions): Glenn Murray (Brighton) 4; Peter Crouch (Stoke) 4
Referee: Lee Mason